Location – One Elmwood Student Centre, the Cube, Queen’s University Belfast, 77 University Road.

The UK continues to be one of the top global destinations for undertaking higher education programmes of study. In 2021-22 there were 679,970 international students studying in the UK (Universities UK Sep 2023).

Queen’s have also noted significant changes in our own student population with over 4000 international students currently enrolled on our courses.

Many of our International cohort wish to remain in Northern Ireland/the UK to work in appropriate employment post-graduation.

In 2021 the UK Government introduced significant Visa changes to enable international students to work upon graduation and the Graduate Route and Skilled Worker are now operational.

We would like to invite you to an information session on 30 November to explain how Queen’s have adapted to this change, to find out the practicalities of the Visa options and recruiting international students, who represent for employers an additional source of skills and talent.

 Event format:

Short presentations followed by panel discussion.

 Our Speakers

Helen McBrinn (Queen’s University Belfast) – Senior Immigration Adviser 

Helen will provide you with an insight into how the Queen’s student population is changing – data on the number of international students currently studying at Queen’s, their varied and diverse backgrounds, and the subjects they study. In addition, Helen will discuss how Queen’s have adopted to this change in terms of student support, how this added diversity on campus has brought positive change and how the Immigration team have adapted to meet the additional requirements.

Stephen O’Flaherty  (Lewis Siklin) – Partner (Commercial Immigration)

Lewis Silkin supports employers to realise the potential of their workforce, ensuring they are able to recruit the right talent at the right time to achieve their business goals and growth, while remaining compliant with immigration laws.  In 2020 Lewis Silkin recruited their first commercial immigration specialist in Northern Ireland. They now have a team of 8 based in the Belfast office, supported by colleagues in Dublin, London, Cardiff & Hong Kong.  Their team of Business Immigration specialists provide advice to the full spectrum of businesses from start-ups to multinationals and offer a high quality, responsive and cost-effective global mobility and immigration support.

Stephen will cover the current Visa options for International students plus practical commercial advice for employers when considering international students for positions.